Diamond Gents Finish Weekend Sweeps with Pair of Victories

SHREVEPORT, La. - After 32 innings this past weekend of never facing a deficit, the question of how the Gents would respond has been answered.

The Maroon and White fell behind 3-2 after five innings of game one against Pacific (0-4), but a four-run sixth catapulted Centenary (4-0) to an 8-3 victory in the first game Sunday, February 4. In the weekend finale, the Gents scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the first against Whitworth (2-2) and never looked back in a 6-2 win.

Down 3-2 in the bottom of the sixth against the Boxers, the Gents exploded for four runs to retake the lead for good on the day. With one out, junior Cameron Guin and freshman Gage Garber walked. After a double steal, a well-placed bunt between the pitcher's mound and first base tied the game. Junior Andrew Russell walked to load the bases and freshman Peyton Cormane cleared them with a double to left field. RBI singles by Russell and Cormane gave the Gents two insurance runs in the eighth.

Freshman Preston Ludwick picked up the win in relief, allowing just two hits with two strikeouts in 3.2 innings of work. Cormane, who came in the game in the sixth, had two hits in as many at-bats with four RBI's.

After a scoreless first two innings, senior Ian Graham singled with two outs and the bases loaded in the third to give Centenary a 2-1 lead.

Pacific scored one in the fourth and two in the fifth to take the lead. In the fifth, a single and two hit by pitches loaded the bases with two outs. A single by Eli Wisdom drove in a pair to turn a one-run deficit into a one-run lead for the Boxers.

Freshman Cole Godkin started the game for Centenary, allowing five hits and three runs while striking out three.

In game two, the Gents scored a pair in the first and eighth en route to the four-run win. After Russell led off the game with a hit and was sacrificed to second, senior Chris Zapata added an RBI single. A stolen base and a throwing error moved Zapata to third, who scored on Cody Crowder's single.

Russell again scored in the seventh after a double, a fielder's choice that moved him to third, and an RBI groundout. After the Pirates cut the deficit to 4-2 in the top of the eighth, two insurance runs in the bottom of the frame provided the final four-run spread. Freshman Chris Haggard singled, moved to third on Ludwick's single, and scored on a throwing error. Guin drove in Ludwick with an RBI single.

Freshman Connor Lee toed the rubber for the Gents, allowing five hits and two runs with three strikeouts in 7+ innings of work. Senior Cole Lavergne picked up his second save of the weekend by throwing a pair of scoreless innings. Zapata and sophomore Cody Crowder both went 2-for-3 from the plate with a run scored and an RBI.

Centenary returns to action next weekend back at Shehee Stadium with a pair of games against Belhaven. The series starts Friday afternoon, February 9, at 4 p.m.